Entering A New Era In Dallas Mavericks Basketball

Before Dirk Nowitzki arrived in Dallas almost 20 years ago, the Dallas Mavericks were at the bottom of the totem pole in the NBA for most of the nineties. Back then, the team was in a state of transition after trading their former No. 2 pick in Jason Kidd for Michael Finley who would later have a solid nine-year career with the team.

The Mavs would then add future hall-of-famers in Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki two years later which started a brand-new era for the entire organization. 20 years later, Dirk is still going strong and now finds himself in what looks to be a new era for the entire organization.

Per Fox Sports, the Mavericks have significantly gotten younger the last three seasons. In three years, their average team age has gone from 31.1 years to 26.7 years. Harrison Barnes, Seth Curry, Yogi Ferrell, restricted free agent Nerlens Noel, and Dennis Smith Jr. are all under the age of 27.

Each player is believed to be a major piece moving forward. More importantly, these young players have a solid veteran presence in the locker room to help mold the future of this team. Combine that with a championship pedigree coach and an eccentric owner that wants to win, the future looks bright for the organization.

After the Mavericks “scaled the NBA playoff mountain” in 2011 and brought home a championship to Dallas, the subsequent years have been subpar for Maverick standards. They’ve swung and missed on big name free agents and notably missed on Giannis Antetokounmpo in the 2013 NBA draft where he was selected 15^th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks.

As the common saying goes, hindsight is always 20/20. However, that particular misstep is one that Mavs fans won’t forget anytime soon.

Back to the positive, though. The addition of a dynamic point guard like Dennis Smith Jr. should bring excitement to a fanbase that has grown accustomed to winning the last two decades. If Dallas can sign Nerlens Noel to a long-term deal, the core of Noel, Barnes, and Smith Jr. is something any NBA fan can get excited about.

The Mavericks have finally turned a corner and it shows in their average roster age. While the team is getting younger in key positions, the front office has still been able to put a competitive team around Dirk.

Given the state of the Western Conference, it’ll be extremely difficult for the Mavs to truly compete against the elite teams in the west. Nonetheless, it’s evident that the Mavericks will have to continue to build around this young nucleus to be able to compete in the future.

The journey is just as important as the destination. Much like it was 20 years ago, the Mavs find themselves in a transition period that’ll hopefully land them on top of the NBA world again.

For now, Maverick fans should soak up every last one-legged fadeaway while they can. Winning a championship may be out of reach, but the future is bright and we should all sit back and enjoy the ride.